Staffordshire Moorlands District Council will receive over £1 million to improve rural transport in the area.

The council will receive £1,038,091 as part of the Government's £20 million Rural Mobility Fund, designed to trial on demand responsive transport in rural and suburban settings - such as mini buses booked via an app – where a traditional bus service isn't appropriate.

It's hoped that this new funding will make a significant positive impact on the lives of people living in more remote communities across the Moorlands by boosting their local transport links, as well as providing valuable insight into an innovative approach to bus travel.

It's also aimed to help ensure more people turn to the bus, rather than the car, as the country looks towards a greener future.

The funding was welcomed by Moorlands MP Karen Bradley as she also commented on a new £3 billion bus strategy, which will require councils around the country, including Staffordshire County Council, to work in partnership with bus operators to improve services for passengers in order to be eligible for funding in future.

Councils and operators will be expected to provide:

- Simpler single bus fares with daily price caps, so people can use the bus as many times a day as they need without facing mounting costs

- More services in the evenings and at the weekends

- Integrated services and ticketing across all transport modes in the area, so people can easily move from bus to train

- Easy to access information, including online, so that services are simple to use

- All buses to accept contactless payments

Karen commented: "I stood on a manifesto at the last General Election that promised to level up and improve transport connections across Staffordshire Moorlands and this boost to our local bus services will help to deliver on that promise."